site.btaBulgaria Repays Principal, Pays Last Interest Coupon on Eurobond Issue Maturing July 9, 2017

Sofia, July 7 (BTA) - The Ministry of Finance has ordered the payment of 990.375 million euro to the holders of five-year Eurobonds of the Republic of Bulgaria, issued at annual interest coupon of 4.25 per cent and maturing on July 9, 2017. The sum includes 950 million euro principal and the last payable interest coupon of 40.375 million euro, the Ministry said in a press release on Friday.

The funds for the repayment of the maturing issue were raised during the double tranche of bonds to the amount of 1,994 million euro successfully issued on the international capital markets in March 2016 under the Global Medium-Term Note Programme for debt issuance on the international capital markets. The transaction included one tranche of 7-year bonds to the amount of 1,144 million euro, at interest coupon of 1.875 per cent, and one tranche of 12-year bonds to the amount of 850 million euro, at interest coupon of 3.000 per cent. Part of the proceeds were used to repay an outstanding debt last year; the rest were kept available as of the end of 2016 to cover the Eurobonds maturing on July 9, 2017, after the Government did not need to use the financial resources for the purpose of preserving the stability of the banking system in connection with the conducted asset quality review and stress tests of the Bulgarian banking system.

After the payment, Bulgaria's government debt has been reduced by 950 million euro: from 12,884 million euro to 11,934 million euro. This represents a drop in the debt-to-GDP ratio of almost 2 percentage points, from 25.9 per cent to 24.0 per cent, respectively. The State budget will thus save debt service expenditures of 40.375 million euro per year.